Today was an awesome ride.  China Camp then Lucas Valley then out to Point Reyes Station and home through Samuel P Taylor Park.  The weather was pretty much perfect and the riders all did great.  The best part was running into the pos peds on their way back from their Russian River.  They are the funnest ever.  I think this was the most fun I've had on a cat series ride this season.

Here are some pictures from lunch where the CAT3 ride caught up to us.  Geoff has been leading them all season and they're all having a great time:

Here's Ian greasin' himself up like a country pig:

Some of our riders in Point Reyes Station:

My pals Bob and Brendan.  We had sooooo much fun on the way back to Fairfax:

I'm lookin a little frizzy blond Linda Evans in Dynasty in this pic.  Ben wisely left his helmet on.

Some of the pos peds got heckled by assholes in Fairfax and I thought it was nasty and unpleasant.  There wasn't anything I could do about it which made me feel bad.  I wish people were nicer.

I got home around 6:30 and Mr. Poe had my dinner ready.  My honey's the greatest!

Bike Mileage:
Today                                     96.8
Week to date                        329.8
Month to date                        461.2
Year to date                       4.259.4
Remaining to Goal              5.740.6
Over (Under) plan                 652.8

I joined my buddies the Different Spokes jersey ride out to Tiburon.  We met up at Peets in the Castro and then headed over to the Golden Gate Bridge where some of us headed up to Marin Headlands and the rest of us just went straight on to Tiburon.  Here's Chris, Michael and John at the bridge:

We did the headlands and then headed over Camino Alto and into Tiburon We stopped at Shark's Deli for lunch.  Here's David:

The guy on the left is Rob who I knew in New Orleans when I was in college.  Which was a long time ago:

Raymond in his super cute jersey:

More lunch photos:

We left Tiburon and then headed back to Sausalito and then did Marin Headlands again.  It was a little windier the second time around but it was still lots of fun.  Here are David, Chris, Larry and I about halfway up:

I got back around 4:30 and we took the boys to the park and I went to bed early.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                    63.5
Week to date                       233.0
Month to date                      364.4
Year to date                      4.162.6
Remaining to Goal             5.837.4
Over (Under) plan                583.4

I headed off after work Sansome to Jackson to Davis to drop off my laundry and then Broadway to Embarcadero and east.  This is the Audiffred building at Mission and Embarcadero.  It was built in 1889 and survived the earthquake by the owner bribing the soldiers who were going to blow it up with the wine and whiskey (source).  It's got a mansard roof which was a little dated for 1889 and is actually pretty unusual in the United States as a whole because the style was popular right after the civil war when there wasn't a lot of glamorous building going on:

I continued down the Embarcadero and stopped to get some pics of AT&T park.  Which I love. 

This is one of the recent buildings in South Beach.  It's really turning into the greatest neighborhood:

I headed down 3rd to the SFSU campus which has changed quite a bit since the last time I visited.  Construction continues at a rapid clip and the plantings are maturing.  I like (as opposed to love) what's going on there.  My only reservation is that, as opposed to the vibrant neighborhood that's popping up in South Beach just on the other side of Mission Creek, the China Basin development seems a little compartmentalized and is resulting in a series of campuses as opposed to a neighborhood.  Which seems a little suburban to me.  But the buildings sure are pretty.  Here's me in front of one of them:

The SFSU campus:

Genentech hall:

I'm not sure what this building is but I love love love it:

.

I continued on 3rd to 16th to Harrison to 18th to Diamond to 17th and home.  Mr. Poe's roses are exploding right now and look so beautiful:

  

We went out to dinner and then I went to bed.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                    22.5
Week to date                        169.5
Month to date                       300.9
Year to date                      4.099.1
Remaining to Goal             5.900.9
Over (Under) plan                547.2

I headed off Corbett to Portola to Woodside to Dewey to Taravel and down to the Coast.  I came up the Great Highway and went into Golden Gate Park at MLK.  I followed it to the Music Concourse to JFK to 8th to Lake to Arguello and into the Presidio.  I came out of the Presidio at the Lombard Gate and then rode Chestnut to Laguna to Polk to North Point to Columbus.  I took some pics in North Beach as I came up Columbus.  I hadn't noticed this garage before.  I guess it's Chinese.  Not in the greatest shape but I like the brick and the geometry of the structure:

Nice classic facade.  Lots of bells and whistles.  Perfectly executed:

Gorgeous view of the Transamerica pyramid from Columbus

And also one of me:

I continued on Columbus to Clay to Sansome and into work.

I headed off after work Columbus to North Point to Van Ness to Francisco to Gough to Chestnut to Lyon and into Golden Gate Park.  I came out on Lincoln and then took Camino Del Mar up to the Palace of the Legion of Honor.  The big yellow thing I like so much is there and it's labeled now!  This piece is glass and the artist is Dale Chihuly.  You can read more about him here.  He's apparently also responsible for the penis shaped thing at the De Young that I'm not as nuts about, but the big yellow thing is perfection:

  

  

Here's an attempt at an artistic shot with the sculpture behind my head:

And, of course, my bike in it's glamorous setting:

The view from the porch of the museum to the Marin Headlands.   It was gusty and a little hazy:

I took Clement to Point Lobos and then down to the Great Highway.  The kite surfers were out in force on the beach:

I went into Golden Gate Park at JFK and took it to the Panhandle to Baker to Page to Pierce to Waller to Steiner into Sanchez to Market to 17th and then home.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                    39.7
Week to date                        147.0
Month to date                       278.4
Year to date                      4.076.6
Remaining to Goal             5.923.4
Over (Under) plan                552.0

It was very foggy this morning but not too cold and not too windy.  I'll take it.  I headed off Corbett to Portola to Fowler to Teresita to Isola to Rockdale to Omar to Sequoia to Bella Vista to Burlwood to Los Palmos to Hazelwood to Yerba Buena to Brentwood to Maywood to El Verano to Darien to san Fernando to Ocean to Clearfield into 34th to Yorba to 35th to Vicente and down to the coast.  I came up the Great Highway and went into Golden Gate Park at MLK.  I followed it to Stow Lake to JFK into the Panhandle to Baker to Fulton.  This is the Westerfeld House at Fulton and Scott.  It was built in 1889 for William Westerfeld in the "Stick Italian Villa" style with impressive verticality.  I love it.  In the 60's it was the home of the Calliope commune which included among its members Bobby Beausoleil who later joined the Manson family.  Mr. Poe reports that it's been a fabulous mansion as long he can remember so it must have been renovated in the seventies or early eighties:

  

Here's me across the street from it:

I continued on Fulton to Steiner to Golden Gate.  This block of Golden Gate is known as the "Seattle Block".  I haven't found out why it was called that but I'm still looking.  The house on the corner is known as the "Chateau Tivoli" and was built in 1892 by William H. Armitage for Oregon shipping magnate Daniel B. Jackson.  It gets it's name from Ernestine Kreling who owned the first opera house on the west coast, the Tivoli Opera House, and who lived here from 1898 to 1917.  Armitage designed the three adjacent apartment buildings and they were all built at the same time.  The Chateau Tivoli went on to be the home for a variety of Jewish organizations after 1917 as the neighborhood became largely Jewish following an influx of Russian Jews following the Russian Revolution.  It's now a bed and breakfast.  The buildings are all incredible, finely detailed, and well maintained.  I love them:

  

I continued on Golden Gate to Market to Sansome and into work.

I didn't get a lot more riding done because I had a doctor's appointment so I just headed home up Market in the afternoon and then took the truck over to Kaiser.  Mr. Poe met me there and then we headed home and took the boys to the park.  There were kids playing La Crosse in the park so we played with the dogs in the tennis courts.  Ashley had an especially good time.  He managed to escape from the tennis courts to go play with the La Crosse but luckily I was able to snatch him up before they let him join the team.  He needs a haircut in the WORST way:

Bike Mileage:
Today                                    17.5
Week to date                        107.3
Month to date                       238.7
Year to date                      4.036.9
Remaining to Goal             5.963.1
Over (Under) plan                539.6

It was still very windy this morning.  But not freezing cold.  I took Corbett to Portola to Woodside to Dewey to Taravel and down to the coast.  I came up the Great Highway and there was a hell of a headwind.  I went into Golden Gate Park at MLK and followed it to the Music Concourse to JFK to Stanyon to Page,  This building is on Page at Shraeder.  It's very detailed and seemingly in really good shape:

  

I continued on Page.  This gorgeous, exquisitely detailed home is apparently for rent.  With a really tacky sign.  Who knew?

  

This is the "Peace Wall" that's been erected at Koshland Park at Page and Buchanan.  Which is next door to the building I lived in when I first moved to San Francisco in 2000.  The park was under construction then and then neighborhood a little seedier.  They are a result of a great program started in 1999 to teach non violence at schools in the Western Addition.  I like:

Me at that intersection.  Looking a little pinched.  Note to self:  Smile with your eyes.

I continued down Page.  There are so many gorgeous Victorians on Page Street you wouldn't believe it.  Here's one of them:

This is the Zen Center at Page and Laguna.  It's a beautiful building:

I continued on Page to Market to Sansome and into work.

I headed off after work 2nd to Howard to 11th to Harrison to Precita to Mission to Park to Muray to Crescent to Agnon to Justin and into Saint Mary's Park.  I took the footbridge over 280 and then Trumbull to Cambridge to Wayland to University to Woolsey to San Bruno into Bayshore.  This interesting factory ruin is off of Bayshore.  By the looks of it, it's the last remaining piece of a large circular assemblage of buildings:

I continued on Bayshore to Guadalupe Canyon Parkway.  And was it ever windy!  It was a
fight all the way to the top and then gusty all the way down into Daly
City.  I took E Market to San Pedro to Washington to 87th to Park Plaza to Southgate to Lake Merced to John Buir to Skyline to the Great Highway to Vicente.  I stopped at pretty Saint Cecilia's for a couple of pics of the pretty tower:

  

And also one of me:

I continued on Vicente to 17th to Ulloa to 15th to Taravel to Merced to Hernandez to Portola.  I stopped to get a shot of the city from Portola and Corbett:

I rode Corbett to Ord and then home.  My 2008 mileage crossed 4,000 today and I'm really happy about that.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                    46.3
Week to date                         89.8
Month to date                       221.2
Year to date                      4.019.4
Remaining to Goal             5.980.6
Over (Under) plan                549.5

This is totally awesome on so many levels (via omgblog).