Farm to Fork Fondo Fun

This May, Lisa, Jay, Katie, Chris, Deidre, Christian, Deb L., and I took off for Middletown to ride the Shenandoah Farm to Fork Fondo. The ride took us through the rolling country side of the Shenandoah from farm to winery, to brewery and back to Belle Grove Plantation where we started out. After 10 days of rain, we couldn't have had a nicer day, and I couldn't have been happier to need sunscreen.

The ride was picturesque before it even started. This is the driveway up to Bellegrove Plantation. The plantation is out of the frame on the right. I got distracted by the morning sun shining on this red barn.

Deb Lane getting read to pass a stranger in pink.

Our first stop was only 7 miles in at Richard's Fruit Market. It was a quaint market/country store. They served protein bars and this apple and onion tart with goat cheese that I thought was absolutely out of this world (although I think I was the only one - maybe it was the goat cheese people didn't like?). The dough was excellent tart dough loaded with butter. I ate two pieces. Maybe three. A huge upgrade from the usual bananas. And I wasn't even hungry yet after such a short distance!

Inside the market

Deidre and Christian lead the way out from the first stop.

The second stop was only 7 miles later. Again I didn't have a chance to get hungry, but that didn't stop me. This time we ate cinnamon apple scones that were a little gooey in their deliciousness. We crunched on apple slices too and took our picture inside a big apple as we looked out towards the mountains. There was an apple orchard off to the left of this picture. In the background you can see all the dead wood they'd pulled out of the orchard and piled in the field, ready to burn.

I don't know. If there's a big apple with a seat in it, you feel compelled to pose for a pic.

Lisa, Katie, Deb L., Deb W., Deidre

Mr. Whetzel squirreling it up on the road

The next rest stop: The Valerie Hill Winery. This was a family-owned 18-acre vinyard centered around a manor built in 1807. I think if you visit when you're not on a bike ride with hundreds of other people, you can do your tasting in the house.

The drive up to the manor was beautiful.

Some info if you want to zoom in and read more.

The rest stop was located under their wedding tent overlooking the vinyard and the mountains beyond.

They fed us mini crab cakes, corn salsa, and a sip of wine. If you're the kind of person who uses the word "lovely," now is when you'd probably say it.

In case we want to come back.

Not sure why anyone would want a pic of the back of a manor, but here it is!

Just a random stop along the road that happened to have some nice light

Wildflowers along the fencing

 Deidre and I stopped to take a picture of these cows under the tree, and this adorable donkey came running up from the field to have his picture taken.

A blond, black, and brown cow taking shelter from the sun

 Next stop was a brewery, but there was also this pig. Was there a pig farm too? Sometimes (often) I do a bad job of looking around to see what's actually happening and where I am.

Here is why I was confused. The brewery is the Backroom Brewery. It started as an herb farm and grew to include hops. The tasting room is located inside the Sunflower Cottage. So it was an herb farm, then a brewery, but not a pig farm. The brewery is the first farm brewery in the Northern Shenandoah.

We all had a taste, but then everyone had a beer but me. Such a bummer to miss out, but beer in the middle of the ride is not on my new hydration schedule (which is working by the way - haven't had any leg cramps since I became more vigilant!).

Back on the road for the last 7 miles to the finish.

The pictures never do the hills justice. I took this while reaching the top of a long hill.

Looking back at the hill. I think that's Jay coming up behind me.

Oh, the promises people make.

And break.

The ride ended with a BBQ at Belle Grove Plantation. For some reason, I didn't take any pics. Aaargh. We all got a free beer and some good food. I stayed after for a tour of the house which was a little long. But I love touring the old houses. In the tradition of the day, I took a picture of the back of the house. These are the back steps. The woman entering under the stairs on the right is going into the kitchen which was in the basement. Slaves had to bring the food outside and around to the side of the house to get it to the diners above. I bet they got in trouble if it got cold and wet too.

Here's the map of the route. It was 48 miles.

Elevation got easier as we went, which was a nice bonus!

50 miles
12.3 mph

Throwback to 2011 - Berkeley, CA

In the summer of 2011, I went to Berkeley, CA for a week to learn a system for teaching math called "Making Math Real." I took one day to myself and rented a bike so I could ride around Berkeley and San Francisco to see what I could see. This from my journal. Pictures that follow are from the ride.

Funny how a city transforms itself from forbidding, dark, and unfamiliar to welcoming, vibrant, and inspiring in a matter of a few days. I went from eating fish curry with no rice and no spoon alone in my room to eating fresh local kale, drinking pinot, and reading my book at a sidewalk table at Venus, a "green" restaurant in town. A person should never visit a place for just a day because it takes time to acclimate, and you can't really see things until after you've done that. 

Tonight, I finally found my way. I lined up a bike for the morrow, figured out the bus and successfully rode it to where I wanted to go, listened to my music, read my book -- relaxed. 

It's hard to switch gears between the intensity of the daily math lessons and the peculiar interests of Berkeley. What a different vibe here! It brings out the conservatism of D.C. in glaring relief. People here are unvarnished--categorically. I don't know if I've noted any make-up. There are adornments: tattoos, piercings, jewelry of the non-precious ilk. I don't know why these things seem different to me--perhaps they're not. It just strikes me that these decorations highlight the body rather than cover it up. But I suspect I'm wrong. Just different fashions pointing to different ideologies and values. No? But perhaps that's exactly what I like about it. 

Tonight I ate dinner just outside campus at a restaurant that serves local food. I sat by the window--open with no screen, ate my lovely gazpacho, kale, and calamari. A perfect end to a busy day. Then I got a coffee to go and drank it on the bus ride back to the hotel. 

The next morning, I picked up my bike at 9am and headed out around Berkeley. I rode through the neighborhoods and the town, then found my way to the campus. All very quaint. Not splashy at all. I lugged my nice camera with me, so for every pic, I had to dismount and dig it out of my pannier. 

Clock tower on the Berkeley campus

In 2011, bike lanes had yet to make an appearance in DC, so the bike boulevard was a novelty to me. Feeling welcomed on the streets was a nice change.

Too bad it was too early for lunch. This cool roadside eatery was blasting music and looking wonderful. But I'd just eaten and had planned lunch in San Fran.

Below is the Berkeley World Wall of Peace. It's located in a park and was constructed out of 5,000 hand-painted tiles in 1988. I loved it. Couldn't fit the whole thing in my lens and still see the art, so had to pick and choose sections. I do wish I'd snapped a pic from afar to see what the wall looked like in the big picture.

After I'd satisfied myself riding around Berkeley, I hopped on the Bart, which is their underground, and headed over to San Francisco. From the financial district, I rode along the water on a fat beautiful bike trail.

Alcatraz

The city.

The skyline

With time the fog burned off and it turned into a nice day.

When I arrived at the very touristy waterfront, I stopped to get some lunch. Why not? I was a tourist after all. I found a little wall to sit on looking out over the water with my bike and ate my fish and chips. It was so windy, a gust took my paper basket of food and scattered it all over the sidewalk. No worries though. When you're hungry, you just gather it back up and eat it as if nothing happened.

Here is my view from the bridge looking back at San Fran and the path I'd ridden. If I remember right, Brian Johnson said folks from NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration) work in that house.

When I got to the Golden Gate, things weren't looking golden, but I thought it looked cool anyway. It's interesting to see no selfies in 2011! Of course I took a million pics, as if I've never seen a bridge before!

San Francisco began to disappear into the fog while I was on the bridge.

I rode over the bridge and continued on for a bit towards Sausalito, then turned and headed back. I ended up clocking quite a few miles - about 35. So as I was passing these neighborhood streets, I was happy to stick to my coastline trail!

Yeah, I'd live there!

I hopped back on the BART - in rush hour, so I'm not sure how much my bike was appreciated - and headed back to Berkeley where I collapsed on my bed for the night!