BayCycle Day 7: The Shady Lane Decision

"Life is not a bicycle ride down Shady Lane."
-- Overheard in Marin County

I had a decision to make on Day 7: Where to ride in beautiful Marin County. My first idea was to drive up Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to the Ross Commons, and from there ride my trike down Shady Lane, a lovely tree-lined street popular with local cyclists. Years ago while waiting for a bus on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard I'd heard a mother admonish her teenage daughter, "Life is not a bicycle ride down Shady Lane." Any local would have understood what she meant: that life is not always easy and pleasant. I had walked down Shady Lane and driven down it, but never ridden a bicycle there. And since I was in the area with my trike, it seemed as though I could finally take that ride.

The other option was to drive down to the north end of Sausalito and ride the bike path to Mill Valley along Richardson Bay. It's a beautiful part of the Bay Trail and a favorite walk when visiting MBW's sister, whose condo overlooks the path. It would be easier to ride with My Beautiful Wife (MBW) since it was on her planned route. I could park at the end, ride up the path, meet her, and we'd ride back to the car together. From there we'd mount both bikes on the car and drive them up the long steep hill to the condo. But I was having trouble letting go of the idea of Shady Lane, so all morning I dithered, unable to commit to one ride or the other.

We were treated to lunch in downtown San Rafael by MBW's aunt and uncle. After eating we walked down the street and checked out this double arch of bicycle wheels, joking that it was placed there in honor of BayCycle 2009. This weekend is San Rafael's annual Italian Street Painting Festival, a fundraiser for Youth in Arts. So we strolled through the festival and checked out the works in progress.I've posted more photos of the festival in my BayCycle 2009 album on Flickr.

Then it was decision time. Shady Lane was not on MBW's route and we really wanted to ride together, so we decided to save Shady Lane for another time and ride the Richardson Bay bike path. MBW climbed on her bike and headed south. I followed an hour later in the car, trike on the back. By some quirk of fate we both took wrong turns in Corte Madera and, in the process of getting back on track, crossed paths unexpectedly at an intersection. I honked and waved, and continued on to Sausalito.

It takes me a while to get the trike unloaded from the car and loaded up with water bottles, backpack, etc. So once I got out on the path I didn't get far before meeting up with MBW. She turned around and we pedaled all the way up the path and back. It was a glorious sunny afternoon, a little cool and breezy but pleasant. The path has great views of Mt. Tam and the surrounding hills.

Having spent most of the last thirty years without a bicycle, one of my favorite things about the trike is being able to ride with MBW. She's had so many great adventures on her recumbent, including riding from San Francisco to Los Angeles twice with AIDS/LifeCycle. On this trip I get to have some of those cycling adventures with her. And when I'm riding with My Beautiful Wife, life is a bicycle ride down Shady Lane.


P.S. Here's MBW's post on Day 7.

BayCycle Day 6: Petaluma to San Rafael

While the love of my life cycled the scenic hills from Petaluma to Novato on Friday morning, I had a leisurely breakfast, tidied up, and loaded my trike onto the car. Then I took the fast route (highway 101) to Novato, and turned onto Novato Boulevard hoping I wasn't too late to catch her coming the other way. Within a mile I saw her, but she didn't see me. I pulled off onto a side road and called her cell phone, then instructed her to look back. A short way down the road we pulled over and went into Sam's Place, what looked like a solid local establishment and a change from some of the fast food we'd been consuming. The menu included everything from BBQ and oysters to falafel and enchiladas. The food turned out to be disappointing, but we had a really great latte afterwards at the Marin Coffee Roasting Company, a drive-through cafe located in a former gas station.


From there I drove to the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Marin County Civic Center, a local landmark. It's got a great view of the Terra Linda area of San Rafael including a copper-clad building in which I'd once worked as software engineer. I stopped in at the library and was pleased to see a couple of book displays for June 2009, LGBT Pride Month. I spent 30 minutes on the computer, met Kathleen at the Embassy Suites, and we went for a 3 mile ride around the surrounding neighborhood.



When MBW* and I were new, she lived in the East Bay and I lived in Marin. When we tired of driving back and forth over the Richmond Bridge, we moved in together in San Anselmo. We both still love Marin County and it's beautiful open spaces and rolling hills. It is always such a joy to be back there. So after checking into our hotel we went for a ride around the Marin Civic Center lagoon and the surrounding neighborhood.


Our next stop was a Long's Drugs where my doctor had phoned in an antibiotic prescription for my sinus and ear infection. As I waited I was struck by the choice of merchandise next to the pharmacy counter: Vitamin Water and Coors Light. Okay, maybe Coors Light is a healthier choice than regular Coors (is it?) but selling alcohol right next to the pharmacy just doesn't seem right. And selling it side by side with Vitamin Water seems downright weird. Watered-down beer next to overpriced water. Beer with a vitamin chaser. Or maybe a lighter take on a boilermaker? The mind boggles.


Then we had dinner with one of MBW's work friends, her almost-done-with-second-grade son, and a friend who helps take care of him. These women are no slouches. One runs the ICU at a nearby hospital, and the mom just finished police academy. After lots of crunchy fried foods seasoned with great conversation, we headed back to the hotel as the sun set and the fog rolled in over Mt. Tamalpais.


* My Beautiful Wife (here's her post on Day 6)